Tenure

Holding; possession. See Tenere. Tenure of land. The manner of possessing land held of a superior, in consideration of services to be rendered.^ Simply, the mode of holding an estate in land. May import any kind of holding, from mere possession to owning the inheritance." Tenure is inseparable from the idea of property in land, according to the theory of the English law. All land in England is held mediately or immediately of the king. There_ are there no lands to which " tenure " does not strictly apply. So thoroughly does this notion pervade the common-law doctrine of real property that the king cannot grant land to which the resei-vation of tenure is not annexed. The idea also pervades, to a considerable extent, the law of realt/ln this country. The title to land is essentially allodial (a. v.), and every tenant in fee-simple has an absolute ' 2 Bl. Com. 298.. ' 2 Greenl.

Ev. § 653. s Commonwealth t'. Wright, 1 Gush. 65 (1848); People V. Warner, 5 Wend. 273 (IfSO); 5 Blaekf.

458; 1 Mass. 203; 14 Ohio St. 61; 9 Yerg. 394; 1 East, 180; 7 Exch. 537, 661. ' Beeson u Beeson, 1 Harr. 472 (Del., 1830). and perfect title, yet, in technical language, his estate is called an estate in fee-simple, and the tenure free and common socage, q. v. This technical language is vei-y generally interwoven into the jurisprudence of the States, though no vestige ol! feudal tenure may remain.' See Feud. Tenure of oflace. The manner of holding or of exercising the duties of an ofiice; also, the duration or term of ofifice.2 The Constitution is silent^ with respect to the power of removal from office, where the tenure is not fixed. Offices not so fixed are held during good behavior, or during the life of the incumbent; or at the will of some department of the government, and subject to removal at pleasure. In the absence of express regulation the power of removal is incident to the power of appointment. The tenure of ancient common-law offices depended on ancient usage; but with us there is no ancient usage. 3 See Behavior; Office, 2. ' Tenure of Office Acts. The act of Congress of March 2, 1867 (14 St. L. 4.30), wiis repealed as to sections one and two, and amended, T)y act of April 5, 1869 (16 St. L. 6), and finally repealed entire by act of March 3, 1887 (24 St. L. 500) — the repeal not affecting '* any offlcer heretofore suspended " under R. S. §§ 1767-72, " or any designation, nomination, or appointment heretofore made by virtue of the provisions thereof." *